Coprinus atramentarius. Fr.
The Inky Coprinus. Edible.
Figure 271.—Coprinus atramentarius. Two-thirds natural size.
Atramentarius means black ink. The pileus is at first egg-shaped, gray or grayish-brown, smooth, except that there is a slight scaly appearance; often covered with a marked bloom, margin ribbed, often notched, soft, tender, becoming expanded, when it melts away in inky fluid.
The gills are broad, close, ventricose, creamy-white in young specimens, becoming pinkish-gray, then black, moist, melting away in inky drops.
The stem is slender, two to four inches in length, hollow, smooth, tapering upward, easily separating from the cap, with slight vestige of a collar near the base when young but soon disappearing. The spores are elliptical, 12×6µ., and black, falling away in drops.
I have found it abundantly all over the state, from May till late frost. In Figure 271 the one in the center will show the spot-like scales; on the others the bloom referred to is quite apparent; the section to the right shows the broad, ventricose gills—cream-white though slightly tinged with pink—also the shape of the stem. The plant at the extreme right has expanded and begun to deliquesce. C. atramentarius is very abundant, growing in rich soil, lawns, filled places, and gardens.